>> carlton was subsequently released from ad seg but declined to talk to our producers any further due to fear of retaliation. when harry met sharon, let's play "hardball." good evening, i'm chris matthews down in washington. leading off tonight, angle of attack. sharon angle is one nasty challenger. last night she took the crowbar to senate majority leader harry reid and didn't let facts get in her way. that said, with the reputation of a tea partier who drank too much of the stuff, it's hard to undercut expectations. just by showing up, she probably met the woody allen standard.

angle's alien attitude toward facts. last night's showdown in vegas is our top story tonight. plus, angle told reid to "man up." she's called reporter impotent and gutness. told him to put on his man pants. they talk about cuomo's legendary prowess? is this the new political assault? also, what's sarah palin doing taking a shot at michelle obama who has an approval rating higher than hers. does palin look for attention wherever she can get it? it turn out john boehner did get money to the ohio republican who loves dressing up like a nazi and doesn't give the money back. we'll talk to sherrod brown about that. and a grim reminder of who pushed for the iraq war. for the latest polls, we check the skiierboard. california, new reuters poll out today shows democrat jerry brown with a four-point lead over meg

whitman in the governor's race. i've been watching that. in the senate race, reuters has senator boxer up one. that'snating race, 46-45. in west virginia, a poll shows joe man chin, the governor, up by ten. he's cleaned up. i guess it was the hickey casting call that got the other guy in trouble. then republican kelly ayotte is pulling away from democrat hodes. she's at 50 in the new hampshire poll. wow, she's pulled out. finally to alaska where a poll from the conservative club for growth shows the three-way race is tied. 33 for joe miller. he's got the nomination. 31 for lisa murkowski, doing a write-in campaign. 27 and within striking distance for democrat scott mcadams. a strange case where somebody can win in a three-way even if

they're on the opposite of most people. we'll continue to check the "hardball" scoreboard every night leading up to november 2, election day. to the nevada senate race. we have chuck today, msnbc white house correspondent, as well. i want to start with john rol rolston. sharon angle, challenger, tea partier, delivering what i think is a cheap shot at the democratic leader, harry reid. let's listen. >> you came from search light to the senate with very little. now you're one of the richest men in the u.s. senate. on behalf of nevada taxpayers, i'd like to know, we'd like to know, how did you become so wealthy on a government payroll? >> senator reid? >> mitch, that's really a low blow. i think most everyone knows i was very successful lawyer. i did a very good job in investing. so her suggestion that i made money being a senator is simply false, and i'm really disappointed that she would

suggest that. >> john, is this the new politics? is this the sleaze way? this the dirtiest, oldest trick? in politics you play a number, if you made money off money you invested, money from before, you're stealing. >> well, she's just playing into what a lot of her supporters think. >> she's saying he's a crook. >> yeah. but she's playing into what a lot of her supporters think, which is harry reid is corrupt and made all this money. and chris, it's patently false. harry reid of a millionaire when he was elected to the house in 1982. he had made a lot of money off of real estate in las vegas as a lot of people did at that time. what i'm more amazed by is how harry reid looked like michael dukakis there, he was subdued. when a person calls him corrupt, come back and say give me some evidence, how can you say something like this. instead he did his usual, low-key harry reid reaction. >> do you think he's afraid or has been badly coached into saying, well, don't look too mean on her. you'll be the troll here. you got to be nice. did somebody tell him that? >> i think there is some of

that. that's true any time, especially in politics. as you know, when a man debates a woman. but i have to tell you something about harry reid. he's uncoachable. he's proven that time and time again. i don't care how well they prepared him. they did not prepare him to answer that question, i bet. >> okay. we know, chuck, television's visual as well as mental. sometimes the mental is not as important as the visual. did she win the visual by being able to belly up, stand up against this senior senator and look like an equal? >> it's hard to say she won everything. her performance is not very good. it's just that his performance was so bad. >> how would you describe his performance? why? >> i guess you have to say he was inarticulate in the first 15 to 20 minutes. he did eventually get there, but there didn't seem to be a strategy. look at the way he answered the supreme court question. he started talking about how great scalia was. this man needs a big hispanic turnout, didn't mention sonia sotomayor once. she understood the message.

>> you have an incumbent who's unpopular, a challenger who's whacky. i call people who watch my show viewers. did the voters say i don't care how strange she is, i'm taking a chance on somebody new rather than what i got? is that going to be the end of this election, how it comes out? >> well, i think if people were watching that debate -- and listen, i think there's very few undecideds left in that race. 1%, 2%, 3%, maybe, maybe. if they're watching, they're watching to see if sharon ainge sell as crazy as harry reid portrayed her. she didn't come across that way. if there were undecideds watching, a big if, i think they might gravitate toward angle. >> is that your sense? >> this is -- there's a two-prong strategy for reid. one, he can try to see if he can gin up his numbers on the ground with a little get out the vote effort. the second is, how much that he moves some anti-reid vote to none of the above in one of these third-party candidacies. that's who angle was up against.

winning over the anti-reid voter that's not sold on her. what are they going to do? did she do enough to keep them away from none of the above? i have to say the laws of politics are running against harry reid. i still believe if harry reid wins, it's an upset because of the laws of politics. >> you got 50% at some point -- >> you got to be sitting at 50. the winds -- >> okay, this morning, moved by her strategist and perhaps with our participating, john, give this guy one debate so that you can show that you can stand up there and meet 'em back and forth. but don't give them too many debates because at some point his expertise will overwhelm her. >> maybe they should have debated ten times. afternoon not sure. chuck's right. the harry reid strategy is he knew he would never get close to 50%. his approval rating. he had to do scorched earth from the primary people to push those people from sharon ainge told none of the above -- sharon angle to none of the above.

there are nine choices on the ballot. he's hoping people will be confused, vote for somebody else. >> the soft approach, reminds my of dick nixon being called before his race with kennedy saying erase the assassin image. he went soft and said, i agree with the senator, i agree with the senator. it was embarrassing. if he'd gone after him like the old nixon that would have taken on stevenson, alger hiss, alan douglas, but he didn't, he lost. you got to play your toughest game in the toughest battle. that's what i think. thank you, chuck. do you agree? >> i -- there it is. your show. >> thank you. >> your house. what am i -- right? >> a little politics. >> we're all politicians. >> that's right. john rolston, thank you, sir. >> go blue. >> great to have an expert here. all week "hardball" hits the campaign trail for the senate tour. monday, off to the university of louisville. i'm going to interview senate candidate jack conway.

tuesday, in new york. then wednesday in chicago wild old interviewer alexi giannoulias. what's with female candidates calling male opponents, telling them to "man up." ? you heard sharon angle saying it earlier. seems to be a growing trend this election year. used over 39 billion plastic bottles of water. ♪ that's enough to stretch around the earth over 190 times. ♪ each brita filter can take up to 300 of those bottles out of the equation. it's a small step that can make a big difference. look for our coupon in this weekend's newspaper. [ male announcer ] you're at the age where you don't get thrown by curve balls.

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back to "hardball." last night in two separate debates, two women candidates, one republican, one democrat, told their male opponents to "man up." for the past couple months we've heard a lot of female candidates and male candidates, nearly all republicans, however, chiding male candidates to do things like man up or some variation on that phrase. we'll let them speak for themselves. let's listen. >> man up, harry reid. you need to understand that we

have a problem with social security. >> so i think if you want to repeal health care reform and let insurance companies go back to their worst abuse, congressman you want to repeal your own first and man up, and do what you're asking other people to do. >> my opponent is addicted to a of spending, waste, fraud and abuse, whether it's spending tax dollars on men's fashion shows or to pay off his crone wes swe -- cronies with sweet deals. >> these are the cheap underhanded, unmanly tactics that we've come to expect from obama's favorite republican, mike castle. i released a statement saying, mike, this is not a bakoff, get your man-pants on." >> impotent, weak, gutless reporter take anonymous sources and cite them as being factual references. >> pam brewer has the cajonies that our males don't have.

>> we have tricky terrier to for all involved. but i've never heard so much. your thoughts? oftentimes it's a female candidate up against a male candidate. and they use the term "manly," "man up," "cajonies," "limp." referrals to sexuality. i'll get to the men in a minute. >> you can imagine if a male candidate said "another like a lady" or "be a woman" and do something like this. this is something you would never stand for. you turn the tables and women get away with it. >> the men have no idea what to say. >> with the exception of robin carnahan it's this mama grizzly -- we're tough, we're going up against the elite men making decisions in the back room. i'd be curious to know what nancy pelosi think about this. i can't imagine her saying that to john boehner, for example. >> she doesn't to do anything. she's as tough as they come. she doesn't need the lingo. your thoughts, john? this is tricky territory for my

fellow male. i don't know what's p.c. right now. it is a common practice now to make these references in debate. sometimes face to face. >> there's really no defense for a man. this is -- it's an effort to bait in a way. you know, if a man stands down from that kind of challenge, he's admitting that he's the panty waste that she's suggesting. if he comes back to strong, he may be looking overbearing. it's really a lose-lose situation for candidates here. if i'm a political strategist, debate prepping people, i'm telling them, you got to be ready for this question and say something like, hey, that was clever, but what are you doing to create jobs? find something you can say back. obviously, if a woman is suggesting that a man is impotent or less than manly or doesn't have cajonies, whatever the choice words on -- in this case "man up" -- there's not much he can do. it's a tough situation. >> some of it gets more pointed like fashion shows, spending money on fashion shows. i think that's a connotation. maybe it shouldn't. let's take a look. let's mix this up and listen to

what carl paladino -- not exactly a sweetheart -- by any means. listen to how cuomo -- how they go after it. >> andrew, come out and debate all the candidates. why do you want to exclude the only african-american candidate and only woman candidate and the green party candidate? i don't understand. come out and debate like a man. >> that sounds different than when a woman says it. it's like, get in the ring with me, stop hiding. but it doesn't seem to have -- cuomo's -- apparently it worked. cuomo's going to debate the guy. apparently this like a man thing was irresistible, jonathan. >> that's right. the real answer if you're not in the political forum where it's totally inappropriate, is to take a swing at the guy. i mean, you know, challenge my man hood any time you want if you're a guy. if you're a woman, i don't know

what to do about it. >> i wonder about this. this stuff happens in traffic in washington. i swear, women can get away with blowing their car horn. they don't care if the other guy gets mad. if a guy blows the horn, he better be ready to take that guy on at the next stop. this let's talk about this on the side of the road sort of thing. i don't want to generalize the anthropology. we saw in the debate -- we watched that -- jump in, jonathan, as well. sharon angle, same age as reid, one taking it personal saying you're basically a crook, you know, you -- you're going to make -- very tough charges. and harry comes back kind of like afraid to show any attitude. >> and that was, i'm certain, you know, everybody knows that it is -- as jonathan said -- very difficult to debate a woman. particularly in this sarah palin age where people are ready to cry sexism. the lipstick on a pig thing. you remember that. >> and the elitism versus the outsider thing. >> this is an insult. you wouldn't say something like that to your co-worker. if they said it on the senate

floor, you'd be hear being it for weeks. >> you're a crook? >> or man-up, come on, and get the cajonies comment. i mean, it's definitely -- >> i want her to finish the thought here. >> it's taking this aggression. that's part of the whole, you know, tea party republican movement that's happening now. that's why, again, i'm surprised to hear robin carnahan say that she's taken that to roy blunt. >> is this all metaphor that these politicians don't punch each other? they don't risk physical assault. they're not street corner kids in tough neighborhoods. they talk in this way as if they're like those people. isn't this a mask raid when people talk tough? as somebody pointed out in football they talk reasonabley -- in sports they aren't as aggressive like in tennis, where they use the nasty language. your thought, jonathan? politics is losing its gentlemanly aspect are we saying? >> the effective debater gets under the skin of their opponent and make them lose their temper. certainly that's part of the strategy for inbound like in that case -- for anybody like in

that case, angle, carnahan. you challenge a man's masculinity and hope it riles him up, makes him look unsettled to the voters. this cuts both ways. harry reid's been calling sharon angle crazy all campaign system. something men use against women in subtler ways. and reid's campaign's been doing it. >> really? >> absolutely. >> don't forget there's some dog whistling here with christine o'donnell. you've got -- christine o'donnell, she suggested mike castle, you know, said all these things about put your man-pants on, acting unmanly. one of her top aides made questions about commenting his sexuality. and she distanced herself from that. repeating it over and over again. something is going on here. >> good examples, guys. probably before you were both in the business, george bush sr. after debating geraldine ferraro, said, i kicked ass last night. that did not go over two to be well. then he did something brilliant against pete dupont. he was taking a shot -- this is

how -- roger, this had to be you. he said "let me help you with that one, pierre." that was a great putdown. anyway, they used to say the first name of the head waiter and last night a polluter, pierre offense to anyone. and good luck with your new job. >> monday. >> is rand paul changing his positi position. b . ica. together, we've rolled out over 100,000 machines to small businesses all over the country so they too can grow. ♪ ge capital. we're there for bobcat every step of the way. ♪

rand. time for the side show. first, comedians for a cause. last night jon stewart and stephen colbert announced they'd be combining their events on the mall into the rally to restore sanity and/or fear on october 30

this year. they also got the an impromptu visit with a supporter with deep pockets. >> stephen? >> what? >> hi, stephen! [ applause ] >> yes, yes! >> here's what i did. i had my staff sneak into your studio early this morning with a little gift. okay? >> can i tell you what's weird about that? we have no security here. >> "daily show" audience -- [ cheers ] >> look under your seats! >> look under your seats. >> look under your seats. >> what's under there? [ squeals ] [ applause ] >> you're going to the rally! you're going to the rally! >> wow. for all the buzz, it looks like no one really knows what this rally on the 30th of the month is all about. i'm going. next, eating they're own. conservative among conservatives, charles krautd

haas hammer went after carl paladino. "what does kamikaze carl do? level some odd insinuation about his opponent's prowess," we talked about that earlier, "he expounds on homosexuality and spends three days having to explain and reaffirm before the inevitable polg. -- inevitable apology." and will the real ran paul stand up? the kentucky senate candidate appears to be moderating his stan on the issues in. a statement to a tax group, it was initially verified that rand paul once wrote, "i would vote for the fair tax to get rid of the 16th amendment. the irs and a lot of the control the federal government exerts over us." far out, going with a national sales tax. when paul was asked this week about support for the fair tax, the national sales tax, he changed his tune, "i haven't really been -- i haven't really

been saying nianything like tha. i think it's better to go with what i'm saying on the campaign trail." they backed again, blaming a former staffer for wrongly distributing that initial fair tax. we'll have a national sales tax statement. believe me. supporting a 23% national sales tax is not a winning issue. that's the fair tax. 23% national sales tax. to replace the income tax. now to the big number. congress could look a lot different come january. how many tea party candidates are on the november ballot the? according to "the new york times," you won't believe this, 138 on the general election ballot. you betcha, they're all republicans. 138 house and senate candidates are flying the tea party banner. the teed off big number. that's "hardbag." coming up, "your business." ♪ [ growls ] ♪

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